Yasmine Oiknine

Yasmine Okinine (Jazz, Ballet) has been living in the East bay for 14 years. She was born in Casablanca, Morocco where she started her dance training in Ballet at the National Conservatory, completed by summer school in Cannes at the Rosella Hightower Dance center. At age 17 she moved to Paris and entered the Institute of Choreographic Art ( IPAC ) where she studied classical ballet with prestigious teachers as Andrej Glegolski and Roberto Bestonso, Jazz with Matt Mattox, Modern with Tony Pierce and Flamenco with Lina Sottomayor . She obtained her certification from the French dance federation, a teaching diploma from IPAC and the State Diploma of dance teaching issued by the French government. She joined the Rick O'Dums jazz dance company in 1990 and toured internationally. She also performed in numerous variety TV shows, movies and music videos (with such artists as David Soul and Paula Abdul ), and shows with artists like Killie Minogue, Village People and James Brown. She's been teaching and choreographing for the past 20 years in France, Luxembourg, Boston and in the Bay Area. She is also the mom of four girls three of whom study ballet at Berkeley City Ballet.